


Dakedo

by korbkorv



Category: Tamako Market
Genre: Angst, Friendship, Post-Canon, Unrequited Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:00:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27426097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/korbkorv/pseuds/korbkorv
Summary: (or: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart)-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Post-movie dribble about Midori's feelings. Kanna is a good friend.
Kudos: 6





	Dakedo

Kanna comes down from the tree smiling and Midori is so happy for her that for a second it seems like she's forgotten all about Tamako and Ooji. 

She wraps an arm around her friend and pulls her in for a big, warm, congratulatory hug. The chestnut-haired girl is showcasing a proud smile the likes of which Midori didn't even know could be formed on Kanna's face, and the sound of laughter dulls the angst welling up in the club president's heart. 

A heart that had previously been so full of love, now broken - but not irredeemably. It's just pain, Midori reasons. She's strong. She'll get over it. There's no need to make a show, and there's certainly no need to cry.

She wishes her body could obey her thoughts as tears begin welling up in her eyes, her head still buried in the crook of Kanna's neck, hug getting tighter by the second. Don't go and make Kanna worried, she's now thinking. It was such a happy moment, but now you're ruining it. Stop. You're better than this.

But Kanna rubs her hand on the other girl's back, and the dams of her eyelids are broken down against her will. Midori sobs. Kanna pats. "Shush, shush", she says, but the blonde girl just cries louder.

"It's alright, Mido-chan", Kanna says, reassuringly, and though the crashing waves of her heart have begun to settle, her tears still fall like waterfalls onto the other girl's shoulder. She can no longer keep her feelings contained. The lid has been taken off, and Midori has to make her pain known.

"I-", Midori sobs. "I loved her, Kanna". It's full on ugly crying at this point. She tries her hardest to keep snot from leaking out, wailing and breathing only between whimpers.

Kanna speaks gently. "I know you did, Mido-chan. You loved her a lot, didn't you?". Midori nods, silently. The girl in the sweater runs her hand smoothly on her friend's hair, comforting her with her wordless shows of affection. "So you let her go", she continues. "You loved her, so you let her go".

The pain in her heart now encompasses her whole body. It's like she's been engulfed by her feelings - all rationality gone, only sorrow and heartbreak remaining in the spot where her brain used to be. 

It's not fair.

"I did the right thing", she manages to say through the tears. "Why does it hurt so much?"

It just wasn't fair. Why does she have to suffer while Tamako feels happiness? Why is it so painful? Still embraced, Kanna hums softly next to Midori's ear, as if pondering. She's a wise person, Midori realizes. She's a good friend.

"You hurt because you loved", she says after a while. Her voice is clear and concise. "It's bad now because it was wonderful then. It cancels out. Would you rather not feel pain right now if it meant not having felt love so many times before?"

She's right. Kanna's words dig deep into Midori, reaching her heart, the fountain of sorrow, and plugging it, the last bits of pain leaving the crying girl's body through a final set of tears. She's right, and Midori knows that she wouldn't have had it any other way. With her rational mind back, she thinks, remembering, and the images of her memory are as clear as day.

She sees Tamako smiling.

Tamako laughing at somebody's joke.

Tamako making the mochi she loves so much.

Tamako tossing her baton at the club.

Tamako walking home from school, with all her friends.

Tamako gleefully greeting Anko when she gets home.

Tamako with Choi.

Tamako with Shiori

Tamako with Kanna.

All of them together, having fun. As friends.

And then Tamako with a smile like a crescent moon, a blush giving color to her white cheeks. Happier than she'd ever been.

With Ooji.

Not with Midori. With Ooji.

And that's the harsh truth.

Even so, Midori still loves her, and she knows Tamako loves her back. Maybe it's not the same kind of love, but she's happy to have that instead of nothing. She's happy to have loved her all this time, because no other feeling is as wonderful.

And most of all, she's happy that Tamako gets to feel that way too.

Midori lets go from the embrace. Kanna is looking at her, worried, but she's calmer than before. She dries her eyes with her hand and gives a sincere smile to her most understanding of friends.

"Thank you, Kanna. I feel much better now".

Kanna's lips curve upwards, and she tilts her head slightly towards her neck. She lovingly rests her hand on Midori's shoulder, and says:

"You can always come to me, Mido-chan."

Midori smiles. It's easy to do so now.

"Thank you."

"Come on, let's go see Shiori. She might be lonely."

"Alright."

"And also, I wanna measure her house. I've been wondering who's got the most optimal living spaces out of all of us. Also, I..."

Midori snickers. As they start moving forwards and Kanna distracts herself talking about measurements, the club president turns around to take one last look at the tree that her friend had just climbed, succesfully overcoming her fear of heights. She'd done the same, too, in a way. With the pain out of her heart, but not with any less love, at least for the moment, Midori realizes that anything could happen from this point onwards.

And unlike ever before, she was excited.

**Author's Note:**

> the movie did an okay job, but i felt they could've been a bit more explicit about how painful Midori's sacrifice must've been for her. hopefully this doesn't suck too bad.


End file.
